Round the World Magazine partnered up with Banana Print to trial the first batch of our Vegan Travel Cards.
What is the Vegan Travel Card?
After we backpacked our way through 26 countries in the space of 14 months, and turning vegan half way through, we found it extremely difficult to communicate with catering staff throughout the world when informing them of our vegan preferences.
We only had minimal knowledge of Spanish and French, and in a country speaking any other language, we didn’t stand a chance!
We found ourselves drawing pictures of cheese, meat and (somehow) cream on napkins, and using Google Translate (badly) where internet was available, all to find out if the food we were considering from the menu contained any non-vegan ingredients.
Low and behold, our efforts were often wasted and we were left disappointed when our meal/drinks were presented to us. We were given Parmesan cheese on top of pasta in Italy, meat in our noodles in Tokyo, and dairy milk in our coffee!
We devised the Universal Vegan Card for ourselves, so we could carry a quick and reliable reference of language translations and imagery, in hope we will avoid a situation of being given the wrong food again. We take supply and demand very seriously as part of our vegan lifestyle and our aim is to limit unnecessary demand for non-vegan products.
What information is on the Vegan Travel Card?
Pictures are universal. No matter where you are in the world, pictures are understood by everybody.
One side of the card contains pictures of non-vegan ‘ingredients’ such as meat, dairy, oils, gelatin and honey.
The flip side of the card contains 14 language translations of “I am vegan” including French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Arabic, Chinese and Hebrew.
We had these languages checked by native speakers and in countries where the term ‘Vegan’ is a new concept, we have compromised and replaced with phrases such as “I only eat plant based foods” and “No animal based ingredients”.
Vegan Travel Card features
We appreciate that flexibility, durability and weight are some of the most important characteristics of any item that is being carried on a trip. We built these features into the Vegan Travel Card to maximize it’s life span and usability.
- Durable – Rounded corners and laminated paper gives the card better longevity. Bending and Soiling the card in cafes and restaurants is less likely.
- Brightly Colored – Easy to find in quick situations, visually effective, ordered sensibly.
- Informative – The international Vegan label is included on the card as well as universal images and “I am vegan” in 14 languages
- Light and Flexible – Smaller than a credit card with rounded corers making it easy to carry the card in your purse or wallet
How can I get one?
If you would like to buy a Vegan Travel Card, or a batch of them, please send inquiries to info@roundtheworldmagazine.com
What could be better? What did we miss?
Would you take this travelling with you?
Let us know your ideas in the comments below, we want to make the perfect Universal Vegan Travel Card for all vegan travelers far and wide